QASP_5-5-2016.docx

ATTACHMENT 2

QUALITY ASSURANCE SURVEILLANCE PLAN

Assistance to Firefighter’s Grant Program For FEMA’s Grant Programs Directorate

1. PURPOSE

This Quality Assurance Surveillance Plan (QASP) is a Government developed and applied document used to make sure that systematic quality assurance methods are used in the administration of the Performance Work Statement (PWS) included in this contract. The intent is to ensure that the Contractor performs in accordance with performance metrics set forth in the contract documents, that the Government receives the quality of services called for in the contract and that the Government only pays for the acceptable level of services received.

2. AUTHORITY

Authority for issuance of this QASP is provided under Contract Section E – Inspection and Acceptance, which provides for inspections and acceptance of the deliverables, services, and documentation to be accomplished by the Contracting Officer or his/her duly authorized representative.

3. SCOPE

The QASP provides Government surveillance oversight of the Contractor’s quality control efforts to assure that they are timely, effective and are delivering the results specified in the contract. The QASP is a part of the contract.

4. GOVERNMENT RESOURCES

The following definitions for Government resources are applicable to this plan:

Contracting Officer - A person duly appointed with the authority to enter into, administer, or terminate contracts and make related determinations and findings on behalf of the Government.

Contracting Officer’s Representative (COR) - An individual designated in writing by the Contracting Officer to act as his authorized representative to assist in administering a contract. The source and authority for a COR is the Contracting Officer. COR limitations are contained in the written letter of designation.

5. RESPONSIBILITIES

The Government resources shall have responsibilities for the implementation of this QASP as follows:

Contracting Officer – The Contracting Officer ensures performance of all necessary actions for effective contracting, ensures compliance with the terms of the contract and safeguards the interests of the United States in the contractual relationship. It is the Contracting Officer that assures the Contractor receives impartial, fair, and equitable treatment under the contract. The Contracting Officer is ultimately responsible for the final determination of the adequacy of the Contractor’s performance.

Contracting Officer’s Representative (COR) - The COR is responsible for technical administration of the contract and assures proper Government surveillance of the Contractor’s performance. The COR is not empowered to make any contractual commitments or to authorize any contractual changes on the Government’s behalf. Any changes that the Contractor deems may affect contract, price, terms, or conditions shall be referred to the Contracting Officer for action.

6. GOVERNMENT SURVEILLANCE

The COR will not provide direction that is outside the scope of responsibilities delineated under this contract and will defer any conditional interpretations to the contractor’s Contracting Officer. The COR will:

· Maintain a detailed knowledge of the technical requirements of the contract

· Document Contractor performance in accordance with the QASP

· Identify and immediately forward notifications of deficient, or non-compliant performance to the Contracting Officer

· Approve priorities of support, resources, and associated schedules

7. METHODS OF SURVEILLANCE

Surveillance of Contractor performance is the method used by the Government to determine whether the contractor is effectively and efficiently complying with all terms and conditions of the contract. In addition to statistical analysis, the functional expertise of the COR plays a critical role in adequately evaluating contractor performance.

· Customer Feedback – Customer feedback may be obtained either from the results of formal customer satisfaction surveys with the Grant Development and Administration Division, Assistance to Firefighter’s Grant Program or from random customer complaints or commendations. Customer complaints, to be considered valid, must set forth clearly and in writing the detailed nature of the complaint, must be signed and forwarded to the COR. The COR shall maintain a summary log of all formally received customer complaints as well as a copy of each complaint in a documentation file. The COR shall also record the tabulated results of all customer satisfaction surveys as well as summary results and maintain them as part of the contract file.

· Demonstration – A qualification method that is carried out by actually observing the work of the contractor. The use of instrumentation or special test equipment is not required.

· Analysis – A qualification method that is carried out by physically examining and assessing the application of techniques in order to determine if they are appropriate and sufficient.

8. CONTRACT SURVEILLANCE

The COR will evaluate the contractor using the Performance Requirements Summary (PRS). The COR will record contractor compliance to the Performance Work Statement (PWS) requirements. This information will be maintained as directed by the Contracting Officer.

Contract personnel performing work under this contract must be able to obtain a suitability clearance (Public Trust) through FEMA’s Security Office, in order to be permitted access and obtain an identification badge, and must maintain the level of security required for the life of the contract. All Contractor employees must be a US citizen.

If the contractor is assigned to a government facility, the Contractor shall be responsible for safeguarding all Government equipment, information and property provided for Contractor use. At the close of each work period, Government facilities, equipment, and materials shall be secured. Contractor shall also be responsible for storing official grant files in a facility that meets all security standards dictated by FEMA’s Security Office.

9. PERFORMANCE REQUIREMENTS

The performance requirements set forth in this section correspond to the PWS.

Administrative and Technical Support Services- The contractor will provide a variety of mission critical support services to Assistance to Firefighters Grant (AFG) Program.

The Contractor shall provide technical subject matter expertise on an ongoing basis to support the Assistance to Firefighters Grant Program. Contractor shall provide the necessary labor to (but not limited):

· Answer phone calls, emails, and other correspondence and contacts from applicants and grantees.

· Analyze progress reports, amendment requests, payment requests, and generally provide advice and counsel to grant program staff and managers as necessary.

· Provide reports to DHS/FEMA for technical matters on an ad hoc basis; and travel as necessary to various cities within the U.S. to provide technical guidance to potential applicants or grantees on the program or to represent DHS at national or regional conferences. In instances such as these, the Contractor representing DHS shall disclose their Contractor status during any representation.

Grant Application Technical Review- The Contractor shall provide technical subject matter expertise to DHS/FEMA and States in the conduct of the technical review of grant applications received as a result of the AFG competitive grant process that are determined to be within the estimated funding range. The Contractor shall support any or all of the grant programs under the purview of the Assistance to Firefighters Grant Program.

Grant Close Out Review- The contractor shall provide grants management subject matter experts to review and close out grants.

Help Desk Administration- The Contractor shall provide subject matter expertise support services for the Assistance to Firefighter Grant Program Helpdesk. The Contractor support services under this task include providing policy guidance on program priorities and the various expenses that are eligible under the numerous grant programs and fielding phone calls from potential grant applicants to answer questions regarding the grant application process and related issues.

Constituent Communication - The Contractor shall develop a process to receive and respond to requests from applicants regarding the disposition of their application. The process shall include a process for explaining the reason(s) that grant applications were not accepted for panel review. The contractor shall develop a letter to the applicant which provides an explanation supported by the technical evaluation documentation provided.

10. DISCREPANCY REPORTING

The COR will notify the Contractor’s Program Manager (PM) and Quality Assurance Program Manager of all discrepancies noted during the COR’s insight/oversight inspection reviews. This notification is for discrepancy correction only and does not indicate concurrence with the discrepancy. The COR will also notify the contract administrator of all discrepancies noted during the surveillance.

The QASP provide Government surveillance oversight of the Contractor’s quality control efforts to assure they are timely, effective and are delivering the results specified in the contract. The QASP is a part of the contract.

11. PERFORMANCE REQUIREMENTS SUMMARY

The COR, assisted by other Government representatives, will perform evaluations based on each of the Performance Requirements stated in section 9 of this plan. The below listed methods of surveillance shall be used in the administration of the QASP.

Disincentives for Meeting/ Not Meeting Acceptable Quality Level (AQL)

Customer Feedback 1,2,3

Customer Feedback 1,2,3

Demonstration Customer Feedback 1,2,3

Demonstration Customer Feedback 1,2,3

Incentive/Disincentives for Meeting/Not Meeting AQL

1. Positive or negative performance will be documented in the contractor performance assessment reporting system/database.

2. Noncompliance to contract standards will be corrected at no cost to the government.

3. The contractor may receive informal or formal acknowledgement for exceptional performance in the form of certificates or letters.

Notification. The contractor shall respond in writing to the Contracting Officer, to all notifications of failure to meet acceptable quality levels within 5 days of issuance by the Contracting Officer. The contractor’s response shall include the corrective action taken to rectify the problem and the proposed measure to preclude the recurrence of the problem.

Page 2 of 6 QASP May 5, 2016